Going with the Flow: How Mindfulness Can Help Players Keep Their Heads in the Game

flow going with the How mindfulness can help players keep their heads in the game

By ELIZABETH FONTAINE HILDEBRAND ’92

TThere are no two ways about it: Football is intense. It’s a passionate, adrenaline-filled, complex dance, constantly moving from one complicated play to the next. Players need to perform at extraordinary levels, showcasing their power, speed and durability.

But in as much as it is a game of physical strength, America’s favorite sport requires a great degree of mental toughness to maintain focus, tolerate pain and make strategic choices under mounting pressure.

“A good football player is one who is both physically and mentally tough, but sometimes the mental part is the harder of the two skills,” said Westminster’s Head Football Coach Scott Benzel. An increasing number of coaches like Benzel are employing a practice to help their players and gain a competitive edge: Mindfulness.

Mindfulness may be getting a lot of media attention these days, but it’s more than just a selfimprovement buzzword. Contrary to popular belief, it is not synonymous with meditation; instead it is the act of being fully engaged in the present moment and paying attention purposefully and non-judgmentally.

A 2010 Harvard study, in fact, shows that people spend 46.9 percent of their waking hours with their minds wandering, thinking about something other than what they are presently doing. Mindfulness exercises teach people to reel their minds back to the here and now to be actively involved in a current activity. And in the sports arena, that level of mindfulness allows for emotion regulation, impulse control and letting go of that last play.

“Anyone who has ever participated in football knows how emotional it is,” Benzel said. “So much of what happens on the field is unscripted. Plays are designed and rehearsed, and after the ball is snapped, execution needs to occur. But sometimes, the plays don’t go as planned and aren’t successful. By teaching our players to let go of that bad play, they can move on and focus on the next task at hand.”

Dr. Alison DuBois leads the Titan football team in mindfulness exercises during preseason training camp.

After nearly two decades of coaching, Benzel has read numerous books on the subject of sports psychology and the benefits mindfulness can bring.

“Books like Pete Carroll’s Win Forever: Live, Work and Play Like a Champion and Dr. Bob Rotella’s How Champions Think opened my eyes to how important mindful training could be,” Benzel said.

Bringing Mindfulness onto the Field

To lead his players in mindfulness training, Benzel turned to Westminster’s Dr. Alison DuBois, associate professor of education and chair of the Graduate School’s Counseling Program. Occasional collaborators over the years—Benzel sometimes recommends players consult with DuBois—both were eager to create a program that would encourage a more well-rounded approach to player development.

“I saw how she impacted those players and how she wanted to be more proactive in helping our guys,” said Benzel.

DuBois jumped at the opportunity. “I literally said, ‘Let’s do it!’ Benzel is a good coach and I appreciate that he’s willing to try new things that will benefit his players,” said DuBois, an expert in the field of cognitive behavioral therapy.

“Mindfulness training can improve areas of the brain and assist in learning, cognition, memory and emotional regulation as well as increasing positive attitude, self-compassion, gratitude and empathy,” she said, adding that training in this area can ultimately decrease anxiety and stress.

DuBois has frequently used mindfulness techniques in her approach—especially with her one-on-one sessions with players. But to take on more than 100 players simultaneously? That was a new challenge.

Welcome to Titan Training Camp

DuBois and Benzel agreed that August’s preseason training camp would be the best time to introduce the entire team to mindfulness training exercises.

Each day after breakfast and prior to the day’s physical training, the football players would make their way to the Old 77 gymnasium for a 15-minute session with DuBois. There were no yoga mats, Tibetan singing bowls or relaxation music—only the “just under” 5’4” DuBois and her voice amidst a sea of hulking Titan football players.

In her approach with the athletes, DuBois said she talked a lot about psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s concept of “flow,” a highly focused mental state that allows for happiness, and how to obtain it.

“We discussed how to achieve that sense of flow athletically, academically and professionally. To put that bad play behind you, you must clear your mind, focus on the present and zero in on the next play and your job or role in it,” DuBois said. “It’s about not letting distractions or bad emotions get in the way of you either doing your job or embracing the moment.”

DuBois took the student-athletes through a series of deep breathing exercises and then asked them to consider what roadblocks were preventing each of them from achieving flow. Sore muscles? Lack of focus? Reluctance to lead? Once roadblocks were identified, attention was placed on how to overcome distractions— on the field, in their classes or socially. She also walked players through exercises to help them zero in on and release negative emotions.

DuBois said she wasn’t sure how the players would take to the heady portion of training camp, so she was surprised at their level of buy-in at the start, joking that maybe they just liked her soothing voice.

“Honestly, I think it was their favorite thing to do each day,” Benzel said. “It allowed them to be present and aware of the challenges that the day would bring.”

Senior wide receiver Bryson Paulinellie embraced the mindfulness exercises from the get-go and felt the approach was beneficial to the entire team—and he wasn’t surprised.

“I have tried yoga and other methods to try to allow my mind and body to remain calm during big games and certain situations. But the mindfulness training takes this to another level,” he said. “It may sound simple, just lying on the ground, focusing on breathing, and thinking about pain and struggles leaving your body, but it truly does have an effect.”

After the success of training camp, DuBois continued running exercises with the players throughout the regular football season. Each Friday before home games, she joined them in the locker room for a few moments of mindfulness, helping them get their heads where they needed to be before taking the field.

Measuring Efficacy

While DuBois said she’s yet not sure what kind of psychological impact the mindfulness training experience had, Benzel said he’s definitely seen a positive response to it.

“The changes we see on the field can be something as simple as positive body language or positive communication between each other. Off the field it has impacted the way our players handle themselves especially in stressful situations. It has given them a sense of resiliency,” Benzel said.

Junior middle linebacker Paul Gonzalez said he had been skeptical about the exercises at first, but an ankle injury during the Washington & Jefferson game changed his mind.

“I hadn’t really bought into the exercises until I got hurt,” he said. “When I was on the training table, I thought back to the exercises and it helped my push my pain out of my mind, find flow, and focus on what I needed to do during the second half of the game.”

DuBois said she is hopeful that the effects of the exercises may generalize into other areas outside of the football field such as in their academics and social lives.

Paulinellie, a biology major, said he’s actively using the exercises outside of football.

“I can lie down at night before a big exam and go through these exercises, allowing myself to remain calm and relax and to not get nervous for the exam,” he said. He also added that mindfulness also works to create stronger leaders.

“Being a senior on the football team, it is my job to take these exercises, which I feel have many benefits, and apply them to the younger players on the team,” he said. “Once they have grasped the concept of the exercises, they can then pass it down.”

S

Living Mindfully

Mindfulness can be practiced anywhere, at any time. If you’re looking to gain a little more clarity in your life—whether at work or at home—Dr. Alison DuBois recommended the following websites to visit to get started.

https://www.mindful.org/10-ways-mindful-work/ https://buddhaimonia.com/blog/mindfulness-tips

For more information about how mindfulness can work for you, contact Dr. DuBois directly at duboisal@westminster.edu.